Existential Depression in Gifted Children

[vivalarevolución]

I found this article really good.  Summed up some of the thoughts that have passed through my mind over the years, although I was not an extremely gifted child.  My mother did tell me I was special.

http://theunboundedspirit.com/existential-depression-in-gifted-children/

[demik]

my mom tells me im special and handsome!

which in the real world means ugly and stupid

[Pacifist]

I think smarter kids learn about existentialism while the others don't. )

[Air tree]

I'm in almost the exact same boat as the article described.

[Novus]

Just reminds me of this.
I know/reference way too much useless ****.

[Halverson]

--MOD-NUKED--

Dis guy, I like dis guy.

[SpAmRaY]

my mom tells me im special and handsome!

which in the real world means ugly and stupid

See I knew we had something in common.

[vivalarevolución]

Just reminds me of this.
I know/reference way too much useless ****.

Yea.  That's exactly the kind of stuff referring to.  I was in Hong Kong back in 1994 when they had the old airport.  It was like staring death in the eyes.

[dorkvader]

Here is the original article.
http://www.davidsongifted.org/db/Articles_id_10269.aspx

My take:

"They call me 'gifted' but what do they know: Even if I am more intelligent, I have gained no happiness or peace from it; the predilection towards mental illness certainly isn't worth it. "

[Altuz]

Thanks, I am going through a similar phase right now.

[Novus]

The trick of dealing with existentialism depression is to hang out with people who are more existentialist than you and whine about it constantly.
You'll quickly normalize 

[vivalarevolución]

Apparently, this article already made the rounds on the black hole of the internet, aka reddit.

http://www.reddit.com/r/psychology/comments/1iqj6o/existential_depression_in_gifted_children/

[Tarzan]

Just reminds me of this.
I know/reference way too much useless ****.

Man, I miss that show...  Munch was the best, but it was a great ensemble cast. 

[Rena]

You know you're the product of a sick society when your intelligence can make you mentally ill. Not that I agree with the article entirely but there's some truth in it despite being kind of pretentious.

[vivalarevolución]

You know you're the product of a sick society when your intelligence can make you mentally ill. Not that I agree with the article entirely but there's some truth in it despite being kind of pretentious.

I would consider it more of a species-wide thing.  Tolerance for people different than the prevailing expectations of the tribe has never been a popular trend (said the armchair anthropologist).

[Thimplum]

I'm a somewhat gifted child, given that I'm technically in eighth grade and studying integral calculus, but I've never really dealt with this sort of thing.

[stancato9]

I'm a somewhat gifted child, given that I'm technically in eighth grade and studying integral calculus, but I've never really dealt with this sort of thing.

Smart =/= gifted

[Thimplum]

I'm a somewhat gifted child, given that I'm technically in eighth grade and studying integral calculus, but I've never really dealt with this sort of thing.

Smart =/= gifted

I'm well aware of that fact.

Are you saying that if you're smart, you can't be gifted?

[Novus]

I'm a somewhat gifted child, given that I'm technically in eighth grade and studying integral calculus, but I've never really dealt with this sort of thing.

You're clearly not gifted enough, obviously.

[stancato9]

I'm a somewhat gifted child, given that I'm technically in eighth grade and studying integral calculus, but I've never really dealt with this sort of thing.

Smart =/= gifted

I'm well aware of that fact.

Are you saying that if you're smart, you can't be gifted?

No of course not.. I'm saying being book smart doesn't mean you're gifted. I am gifted and a lot of people have had the misconception that gifted = smart.

[PointyFox]

I thought gifted was the new special.

[iri]

where has "alternatively minded" gone?

[Tym]

my mom tells me im special and handsome!

which in the real world means ugly and stupid

My mum says I have a face for the radio... 

[Thimplum]

I'm a somewhat gifted child, given that I'm technically in eighth grade and studying integral calculus, but I've never really dealt with this sort of thing.

Smart =/= gifted

I'm well aware of that fact.

Are you saying that if you're smart, you can't be gifted?

No of course not.. I'm saying being book smart doesn't mean you're gifted. I am gifted and a lot of people have had the misconception that gifted = smart.

Yeah, from what I understand smart kids are the ones who work hard to learn the material in order to get good grades, while gifted kids are the ones who are more self directed learners, and learn because it's interesting, not because it gets you a good grade. A perfect example of one of those smart kids would be my brother. He always gets A's and does his homework. But once he's out of school and done with that, he won't touch anything learning related unless it's homework or some other assignment. I hate homework a lot, and rarely do it. I just don't see the point, but after I get home and maybe do my homework, I spend most of the remainder of the day reading about whatever catches my interest at the time. Sometimes it's calculus, sometimes it's machining, some it's I don't even know what. I'm not saying that just because I like learning I'm better than my brother, though. He's probably going to end up making 10x as much money as I will, because he's good at doing things, no matter how pointless, as long as there's some reward at the end if he does a good job, like a paycheck or degree.

[vivalarevolución]

where has "alternatively minded" gone?

I think we call these people "free spirits" now.  The government or your employer might see them "problem citizens or employees."

[Binge]

I was gifted once.

Used the receipt to return and cash it in.

Now I'm wealthier than I once was.

[thesentinel]

This article has described me since about 4th grade.

[Novus]

I was gifted once.

Used the receipt to return and cash it in.

Now I'm wealthier than I once was.

and happier!

[vivalarevolución]

Rereading this article and the comments on the link from dorkvader has done a wonderful job of reintroducing the existential dread that has been absent from my life for a few months.  I find that bolt-modding is a great distraction from these navel-gazing thoughts, proving once again how keyboards can save your life.

[Puddsy]

I've been called "gifted" quite frequently. Or was, until it turned out I'm a comeplete ****ing psycho. Seriously, I'm on like 5 different pills for this. It's not just depression, either, I've got all the really ****ty mental illnesses.

So yeah, next time you say, "I'm going crazy" just think about me.

*I'm quite bitter about spending the last few days in the hospital. Again.

[iri]

I've been called "gifted" quite frequently. Or was, until it turned out I'm a comeplete ****ing psycho. Seriously, I'm on like 5 different pills for this. It's not just depression, either, I've got all the really ****ty mental illnesses.

So yeah, next time you say, "I'm going crazy" just think about me.

*I'm quite bitter about spending the last few days in the hospital. Again.

are you a finnish american?

[Novus]

I've been called "gifted" quite frequently. Or was, until it turned out I'm a comeplete ****ing psycho. Seriously, I'm on like 5 different pills for this. It's not just depression, either, I've got all the really ****ty mental illnesses.

So yeah, next time you say, "I'm going crazy" just think about me.

*I'm quite bitter about spending the last few days in the hospital. Again.

That sounds normal for New York.

[Puddsy]

I've been called "gifted" quite frequently. Or was, until it turned out I'm a comeplete ****ing psycho. Seriously, I'm on like 5 different pills for this. It's not just depression, either, I've got all the really ****ty mental illnesses.

So yeah, next time you say, "I'm going crazy" just think about me.

*I'm quite bitter about spending the last few days in the hospital. Again.

are you a finnish american?

no sir, mostly russian

[paicrai]

*I'm quite bitter about spending the last few days in the hospital. Again.

Were you pissed by the hospital keyboards?





(sorry if it's too serious for joking)

[iri]

I've been called "gifted" quite frequently. Or was, until it turned out I'm a comeplete ****ing psycho. Seriously, I'm on like 5 different pills for this. It's not just depression, either, I've got all the really ****ty mental illnesses.

So yeah, next time you say, "I'm going crazy" just think about me.

*I'm quite bitter about spending the last few days in the hospital. Again.

are you a finnish american?

no sir, mostly russian

а, ну это всё объясняет.

[berserkfan]

Most geeks probably suffer from the same thing.

The best cure? I don't know. Make your own guns and wipe out the jocks, then force the cheerleaders to mate with you, so that you can perpetuate geekdom into the next generation?

[Puddsy]

I've been called "gifted" quite frequently. Or was, until it turned out I'm a comeplete ****ing psycho. Seriously, I'm on like 5 different pills for this. It's not just depression, either, I've got all the really ****ty mental illnesses.

So yeah, next time you say, "I'm going crazy" just think about me.

*I'm quite bitter about spending the last few days in the hospital. Again.

are you a finnish american?

no sir, mostly russian

а, ну это всё объясняет.

I don't speak much Russian (I do speak a few of the far eastern languages though), my family is just full of russians who escaped during the revolution.

I guess it does explain a lot of it, though.